


Curious Shadows

by StormWildcat



Category: Naruto
Genre: Don't wake the Kiba, M/M, POV First Person, Shadow Strangle Jutsu put to better use, Sneaky Shikamaru
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-22
Updated: 2016-02-22
Packaged: 2018-05-22 16:16:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6086335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StormWildcat/pseuds/StormWildcat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stuck on a mission with only one teammate, Shikamaru takes the first shift of the watch. And between the summer heat and his tiring body, his mind wanders away from potential attack and shifts to his sleeping comrade.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Curious Shadows

Anyone who tells you that 2-man missions are simpler is lying to your face. Speaking as someone who is usually in command of full squads, I can tell you from personal experience that being half of only a pair of shinobi leaves you at a serious tactical disadvantage. But given the circumstances of the village and the fact that war was threatening our doorstep every day, it was obvious to us all that we were going to be spread pretty thin. But to send out groups smaller than three could be considered reckless from a tactician’s standpoint. My standpoint. Yet I had been sent on one regardless of my arguments. The Fifth was one giant pain in my ass and barely gave my insisting counterpoints the time of day. Short-handed, no other choice, your partner and you can handle it just fine, technically there’s three of you, shove it and get the hell out of my office; yeah I think that just about summons up the conversation. 

So I was sent to what could potentially be a trap of a mission with only one teammate. Could tell you what it was about but it would be troublesome to go over it. Didn’t really matter much anyway. Not quite the point of the story being brought up at all. This wasn’t so much of a tale of great strength or victory in battle as it was more about sneakiness, curiosity and a well-controlled jutsu by yours truly. And him. Out of everyone I could’ve been sent out with to carry out whatever-the-hell we were to do, I was shipped out with a swift kick in the pants with Kiba and his ninja hound Akamaru. Sorry but last time I checked, a pet didn’t count as a third teammate. I don’t particularly care how well they worked together or that the dog could transform into its Master and act as a much more solid and effective clone. They were a package deal, leaving us short one member to make a respectable or effective team. Probabilities flew thru my brain on what our chances would be should be come across your average-sized team of enemies ninjas. Short-hand version: it wasn’t good. 

Despite the obvious disadvantage we were handed, Inuzuka was annoyingly peppy. “Yahoo! Man I’ve been hankering for another mission! Right, Akamaru!” his growly voice roared as we continued our walk down the dirt road leading away from town. A booming bark answered back. For a second I thought my ears might’ve been bleeding. Damn I always forget how big that freaking dog has gotten since we first graduated. He trotted along with Kiba riding on his white-furred back. They were moving way too fast as far as I was concerned. Honestly this wasn’t a mission that called for any particular haste and the noise they were making was dangerous even within a mile of home. 

“Can you keep quiet? And slow it down. Conserve your energy where you can. You don’t know what we’re going to run into,” my voice came out in my own growl. It displayed my budding annoyance. This was going to be a long mission if I was already sensing an incoming headache and a need to kick Kiba off his fuzzy steed. 

“Aww c’mon, Shikamaru! We just left a little while ago! And we’re anxious to get going! Can’t you just pick up the pace?” he whined lowly. Ugh, I hate whining. Didn’t he think I got enough of that being pre-destined to be grouped up with Ino? Was at least thankful for a break from her brand of complaining but still. Silence was a much more favorable option.

“No. If we run into any enemies on our way, we’re going to need all the energy between us. Our pace is spot on compared to our current position and the distance we have left to get to our destination within the allotted time to carry out our mission.” Slitted eyes blinked at me. So did the dog’s. I heaved a sigh, “We’re doing fine and we’re not going any faster. Deal with it.”

“Uuuggghhhh, you suck.”

“Deal with that too.”

Yeah I know, Kiba and I are friends. Why the bickering, right? We move at completely different speeds. He’s always full throttle, charging into anything and everything. Me? I’d rather take a nap than move at all. Even if we’re friends, it didn’t mean that we were completely compatible when it came to everything all the time. And with no third to balance us out, it was highly expected that we were going to be at odds at some point. But I’ll admit, the fact it was happening within the first half hour of our mission was a little less expected. Luckily after the initial disagreement, we leveled out to normal conversation, Kiba and Akamaru burning their excitement and obnoxious, excessive energy by doing a few perimeter checks. Least it got them out of my hair for a few minutes. Plus the walk was pretty calming when I was alone despite being on alert. The clouds were particularly fluffy that day. I could enjoy them easier with the two mutts.

Our destination needed to be hit at a specific time and given that slot was another day and a half off, I decided that camping out for the night rather than continuing to move would be wise just after the sun had set. After a quick cooking of dinner and putting out the fire for the evening, I managed to convince Kiba that we needed to turn in for the night. Considering our numbers and the unpredictability of the area and persistence of our enemies, I agreed to take the first watch. Initially he argued that he and Akamaru were both fully prepared to stay up for the entire night, but he passed out in only a few minutes. I shook my head when I noticed he was still and his eyelids twitched from rapid eye movement. Way to fight me on it then fall asleep almost instantly, jerk. Your argument is invalid.

The night air was surprisingly sticky with summer heat. I found myself pining for my conditioned room and cool pillow as I groaned at the disgusting quality of the forest air. It would be gross like this for my mission when I’m stuck with one other guy and his four-legged critter. This perfectly aligned with my usual lucky streaks. Given that we were stuck for the night I shed my vest and black shirt, leaving myself in the netted top underneath. There was a rush of air to my newly exposed skin that gave me momentary relief but there was still the issue of breathing. Each breath I took felt like I had my head stuck in a dryer full of soaked clothes. My patience for the entire mission was worn thin as it was; adding the weather just made everything unbearable. And I had volunteered to stay conscious of the shitty air I was sucking in. What the hell was the matter with me? Oh that’s right, responsibility for my squad or something like it had really set in after I became Chunin. Always felt like I had to make the first sacrifice before my team. Isn’t there a “field generals first” rule I could force or anything? Without my brain acting at full capacity we would be good as dead if we ran into some Sound assholes. But I had a responsibility to my teammates above all else. What a drag.

As the night air did little to better itself, I kept all my senses tuned to our surroundings. We had taken the liberty of setting small traps in the area in case we were being stalked, but in case the enemy was smart enough to realize we weren’t stupid, I had to keep my guard up. But as time progressed and the moon slowly lurched across the sky, I found my attention drawn elsewhere. Kiba had also noticed the oppressive weather and stripped from his usual jacket, dressed in the short sleeve version of my netted shirt. I couldn’t help but let my bored eyes wander over his skin, chest falling and rising with each calm breath that was synonymous with a sleeping being. I was always a little jealous of his skin tone. Just slightly more brown than a majority of our graduating class, it made him even more exotic-looking than he already was. Not every day that you ran across a guy with wild brown hair, animalistic eyes, fangs and red markings on his cheeks. Too add to that, he had more muscle mass than me. Made sense since he was more of a taijutsu user than me, but I couldn’t help but feel the irk that came with human envy. Much as I like to say that worrying about things like looks is just too much of a bother for me, it doesn’t mean that I don’t occasionally get attacked by the green eyed monster. 

Didn’t take long for my brain to start warping my thoughts once I had fully taken in Kiba’s sleeping form. In moments I moved on from jealousy to a kind of weird admiration. Guy was in good shape, after all. Have to respect that. I’m also not afraid to admit that he was attractive. I’d be the last guy to tell you that I haven’t let my gaze linger on him for longer than it probably should. Hey, I like what I like ok? Apparently I was ok with an average woman but men needed to try a little harder to get my attention; Kiba had earned it. Like I said before, he’s exotic. Not like no one else was thinking the same things I was. The main thing that kept me at bay was that mouth of his and how it liked to run a lot without asking his brain for permission first. If said brain even worked properly. His scores in school weren’t much better than mine and Naruto’s, and I only failed because I was too lazy to put pencil to paper. Sometimes I like to ponder what would’ve happened had I actually tried. Probably could’ve avoided being paired up with Ino. Then again I could’ve been stuck with some of the others who probably would’ve been worse. Team Shika-Ino-Cho second generation may have never happened, and instead it could’ve been Team Shika flies off the deep-end and ends up in a mental institution. Not like that still couldn’t happen. I’m still young. There’s time. 

Back to the main focus, I couldn’t help but note that Kiba’s mouth was silent. Only the sound of steady breathing escaped those slightly parted lips. His words and way of speaking were no longer a factor and it made him far more alluring and tempting. Yeah, I know. Me? Falling into temptation? Usually I just turn cheek at these kinds of troublesome feelings but there were too many variables adding to the moment. The dense air of the night that was probably cutting off some decent oxygen to my brain clouding my judgement and thoughts, both of our bodies glistening in a thin layer of salty sweat, and my hot teammate sleeping only feet from me with his top half on glorious display. Can you blame me for having a few more ambling ideas and notions in my head of the hormonal kind than usual? Didn’t think so. 

My brain started rambling off some juicy tidbits, most of them requiring me to get up from my spot on the ground that I had already settled into. Hate when that happens. Shame too since a lot of the fantasies would’ve been really enjoyable to carry out. Then my mind actually started functioning on a normal caliber and scienced properly how I could have my cake and eat it too, so to speak. 

I could feel a devilish little grin pull at the corners of my mouth as I quietly formed the proper hand seals and gathered up chakra. With the moon relatively high in the sky, shadows were rampant over the forest floor, cast down from the illuminated tree tops. It would be no problem using them to my advantage. Carefully I willed my own shadow forward, watching it snake in and out of the dark images of branches and leaves spotting and slashing the dirt as it approached Kiba. Though my target was still, I had to be reserved about my speed. It wasn’t exactly a straight shot to Inuzuka. My current sitting position left me with a great view of the sleeping ninja, but with my shadow sneaking along the ground, there was a new element to take into consideration; Akamaru. The hound had taken refuge beside his master and acted as a living wall between us to an extent. Damn dog. If I could I would have clicked my tongue in annoyance but there was a risk of waking either of them up that I couldn’t afford. I was mid-jutsu and having one or both of them awaken during these crucial moments would look awfully suspicious. Part of me considered admitting an attempt on their lives rather than on copping a feel on my male teammate. Then I shook my head. Ridiculous. 

Careful to not accidentally touch the furry beast beside my target, I felt my shadow arrive at its destination. I could feel it snag onto him and start to ascend onto his skin. With a bit more will my shadow shifted and split, forming a likeness to my own hands at the ends. Shadow Strangle was feared far and wide as one of the most terrifyingly creepy jutsus in the village, one that leaves you paralyzed, defenseless and torments you to the last choked breath. As a young guy, you know I’ve found other uses for it. And it’s increased my control over it exponentially. What’s more interesting is that no matter how many enemies you might have caught in it, it feels like you’re choking every single one with your own hands. So what does that mean here? Well it means that I could actually _feel_ Kiba’s skin, the netting of his flimsy shirt, the sweat beading on his collarbone. Another consistent trickle of will had the shadowy extensions of my fingers and palms run over my sleeping comrade, taking in every inch I dared to explore. His arms were hiding solid muscle that were relaxed in his deep sleep, the abs my eyes had already feasted on were even more delicious as a touch. A solid chest begged for a few ghostly touches while I considered the option of allowing the second hand to mosey a little further south. In that moment I recalled our trip to the hot springs as a group and the lack of shame among a majority of our guy friends, including Kiba. I wondered if there had been any noteworthy progression in the entirety of his anatomy and not just his muscle mass. Before I could finish the quiet deliberation in my head, the notion was answered for me.

By a pair of animalistic eyes staring at me. 

“There a particularly reason you’ve got your shadow sicked on me, Shikamaru?” Kiba questioned, his rough voice staying at a lower decibel than I had anticipated if he had woken up during my exploration. Interesting.

“Shit,” I breathed out. I was frozen. My shadows stayed still as I did. For whatever reason I didn’t recall them immediately. Chalk that up to overwhelming embarrassment and being completely dumbfounded as to what to do next. Wasn’t exactly a situation I’d ever been in before. And to have my companion questioning why I was pretty much feeling him up with my Shadow Strangle jutsu was a little more than I was used to dealing with. “I’m…just…practicing my stealth with it. Relax,” I grunted softly. Hopefully he couldn’t see my cheeks blushing from where he was. 

“That so?” I didn’t like the tone he took with that question. It was…knowing. 

“Yeah.”

“Then why is one of your hands slipped under the hem of my pants?”

Oh son of a bitch. My subconscious train of thought had willed the second of the pair concentrating on Kiba’s skin on a trip downtown and I hadn’t fully taken notice of its roaming. How the hell did that even happen? Then again I had been considering it. Guess a certain part of my brain decided on behalf of the rest of me. Sometimes being a teenager involved some self-treachery. There were no words I could come up with to slick my way out of the situation. Honestly there was nothing to say except, “Looks like you caught me.” Nerves forced my mouth into a twisted little smirk and my hands lifted as I retracted my jutsu. “Sorry, man. Guess I need some sle-“

“You could’ve just asked me if you wanted to take a feel, ya know.”

“What?” My eyes shot open and zeroed in on Kiba’s grinning face. He looked wolfish with his fangs bared, tongue swiping over his lips and toying with his sharp canines. Shit that was hot, but still what the hell was going on? “You serious?” Again my hormones struck. Nothing more intelligent or inquisitive found its way out of my head and lips. Pretty sure all my blood was rushing elsewhere. Especially with Inuzuka waking to my sneak attack so…willingly. 

“Dead serious.”

My eyes flicked towards the large pile of white fur sleeping next to him. “What about Akamaru?”

“Don’t worry about him. Gave him a little something in his share of food to help him sleep soundly.”

Now that made me grin back. “Were you planning on doing something with me?”

He let out a growling chuckle. “Thought you were the smart one here.”

As the two of us got up from the dirt, both our minds on the same train of thought, I couldn’t help but add our situation to the short list of reasons why 2-man teams were advantageous.

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't written Naruto fiction in SO LONG but since I'm rewatching to show it to my gf for the first time, I've fallen in love all over again. Except more of these boys and a few others in the future.


End file.
